Following the recent unveiling of Henerik Fisker’s Thunderbolt concept car, Aston Martin’s legal department has filed a lawsuit against the former Aston Martin designer (also the former owner of Fisker Automotive) for allegations of copyright infringement with regards to many aspects of the Thunderbolt's design.

When Fisker first introduced the car, he claimed that the concept was his adaptation of the Aston Martin Vanquish and featured his idea on what an ideal Vanquish candidate would look like if he was behind the designer’s pen. The Thunderbolt retained the Vanquish's all-carbon fiber body, but stood out by offering a revised suspension, revamped exterior styling, as well as a whole host of interior tweaks aimed at making the car more performance oriented while still retaining its high level of luxury. The only problem is that, according to Aston, Fisker never formally seeked approval for the car and was never granted such approval by the British sports car maker during the Thunderbolt's gestation period. Aston Martin is also quick to point out that the car itself is not based on a current Vanquish, but is actually a variant of the previous generation DB9/DBS platform.

In a pointed statement released to Bloomberg, Aston Martin pulled no punches in its criticism of Fisker and the Thunderbolt, claiming "Fisker's bad-faith intent to free-ride off the tremendous good will associated with the famous Aston Martin mark, wings logo, side vent mark, and Vanquish mark could not be more transparent." Aston Martin's latest legal move comes after a recent legal loss for the company after it was forced to change the name of its recently unveiled Vantage GT3 to the Vantage GT12 after Porsche cried foul in court, claiming it would have diluted the market for its GT3-badged variant of the iconic 911 sports car.

When Fisker first presented the car, he claimed it was intended to be merely a one-off design study creation, though he did reveal that a limited production run was possible if there was enough interest in the concept car, which could've forced Aston Martin's hand legally. If the car did make it into somewhat formal production, it would've retailed for about $400,000 and be distributed exclusively through California-based Galpin Aston Martin of Los Angeles.